Domestic private firm Pacific Corporation has increased its investment portfolio by commencing construction of a seaport in the southern-central province of Binh Thuan’s Tuy Phong district last week.

The VND2.3 trillion ($107 million) Vinh Tan port is invested by the corporation’s Vinh Tan General Port Joint Stock Company. It will operate for 70 years. 51 hectares will be used for the construction of logistics infrastructure.

The first phase of the port will include two docks capable of handling 30,000 deadweight tonnage (DWT) ships and one wharf for 3,000DWT ships.

The corporation’s chairman Phan Van Quy said the port would be rapidly completed. “The first phase will come into operation by the end of 2016. After that, the second phase will receive additional investments based on cargos volume.”

Deputy Chairman of the Binh Thuan Provincial People’s Committee said, “This port, together with other projects in the province like the Phan Thiet International Airport, Highway 1A and the Dau Giay-Phan Thiet route, will help form a good infrastructure chain for the province’s socio-economic development. This port will lay a foundation for implementing industrial projects which are currently being considered by foreign investors in the province.”

He said Binh Thuan was  well-known for its tourism development, but this was likely to change with several heavy industry projects slated for operation.

Quy said the corporation had been heavily investing in industrial projects in Binh Thuan under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model.

These projects include the 2,000 megawatt Vinh Tan 3 thermal power project co-invested in by Hong Kong’s One Energy Group and Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) in Tuy Phong district’s Vinh Tan commune.

The corporation is also co-operating with Europe’s IPR-GDF SUEZ Group and Japan’s Sojitz Group in a project to build the 2,000MW Son My 1 thermal power plant in Ham Tan district’s Son My commune.

The corporation is also carrying out procedures to invest in two wind farms including the 82.5MW Thai Hoa farm in Bac Binh district’s Hoa Thang commune and the 52.5MW Thai Phong farm in Tuy Phong district’s Hoa Minh, Chi Cong and Phong Phu communes.

The corporation is co-operating with South Korea’s Doosan Group, Japan’s Mitsubishi Group and EVN’s Power Engineering Consulting Joint Stock Company 2 in implementing a $1.36 billion engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) contract for the 1,200MW Vinh Tan 4 thermal power plant in Tuy Phong district’s Vinh Tan commune. This project is invested in by EVN’s Power Generation Corporation 3.

VIR